Sears Profit Rises 20%, Helped by Gain On Legal Settlement

Retailer Sears Holdings said its first-quarter earnings grew 20%, helped by one-time gains and improved performance at Canadian and U.S. stores.

For the quarter ending May 5, the Hoffman Estates, Ill., retailer said net income rose to $216 million, or $1.40 a share, from $180 million, or $1.14 cents a share, a year earlier.

Sears

Excluding one-time items, which included gains on a legal settlement and a cutback in retirement benefits, the company earned $1.10 a share compared with $1.11 a share during the first-quarter in 2006.